Search

Talking Turf: Bayer Green Solutions Team Helps You Plan Now to Maximize Snow Mold Control

Published online: Aug 15, 2017Sod

It’s time to start planning snow mold applications. Here are quick points on maximizing control of snow molds.

* Check calibration and spray coverage – A full season of applications may wear out or plug nozzles and the impact won’t be visible until next season.

* Consider an early application – While snow mold symptoms typically appear in the spring following snow melt, sclerotia begin to germinate in the fall at air temperatures of 50-65°F. Controlling the first stages of disease development with a fungicide application will help limit snow mold severity in the spring.

* Protect young turf– Fall-seeded turf is usually heavily fertilized to hasten establishment, but this also makes it succulent and especially susceptible to snow mold in the late fall. Be extra cautious with young turf and protect it with preventative snow mold applications.

* Use multiple active ingredients – Two or more active ingredients in a fungicide application consistently provide better snow mold control than applications with only a single active ingredient.

* Consider reapplying after heavy rain– If two or more inches of rain falls between the final fungicide application and snow cover, consider making an additional application to maximize disease control and ensure a successful start to the 2018 season.

Tom Cook, 67, took over the Oregon State program in 1977 when he was just 27 years old. During the next 31 years, until he retired in 2008, more than 300 students went through the program that Cook ran mostly as a one-man show.